Astriferous
by Crystal Silvera
Summary: There are only a few months left until the beginning of the Invitational, and Irina wants to be sure that everything is the best it can be. One-shot, post-AWOM and pre-GWP. (Originally posted on AO3 for the Young Wizards Christmas in July fic exchange.)


_ASTRIFEROUS:_

adj.: bearing stars, made of stars

* * *

 _"Nitaaa!"_

Nita Callahan groaned and rolled over in her bed, burrowing deeper into her covers. _Maybe if I don't respond, it'll just be a dream . . ._

Silence. An undercurrent of voices. Then—

 _"Nita!"_

There was a rapid thundering, muffled by distance, from somewhere very far away. Nita hoped.

 _Please tell me this is part of a dream . . ._

"Nita, seriously! It's almost _eleven_ , d'you plan on sleeping the whole _day_?"

Nita made a sound that sounded more like whalespeak than human language. "This better be good . . ."

"Oh, it _is_." The smug note in Dairine's voice made faint dread settle to the bottom of Nita's stomach. "Tom and Carl dropped by, and they're wondering where you are." There was a brief, triumphant silence that only made Nita's dread melt towards slight panic as she dragged herself up into a sitting position and stretched. She squinted at Dairine. "What's the dramatic pause for, runt?"

Dairine's smirk was practically the mirror image of a certain alien kingling's. " _Kit's_ here too."

Nita hurled a pillow at her instantaneously, which only made Dairine collapse into a fit of laughter. _I wonder,_ she thought bitterly, _how much energy would it cost to send her to another galaxy? Or universe?_

Nita rolled her eyes. "Oh stuff it, you, that joke got old _eons_ ago."

Dairine afforded one last snort. "Never." She ducked under Nita's second pillow and plunged down the stairs, yelling that Nita had just woken from her beauty sleep and was being rather antisocial today, please excuse her.

Nita threw off the covers and stood, wincing at the pain in her neck. _This is what I get for oversleeping . . . But I wonder, what do Tom and Carl want?_

She sighed and headed down the stairs, not bothering to change out of the shirt and shorts she'd thrown on before sleeping.

* * *

"I don't mean to sound rude, but . . . why _us_?"

"I _think_ the idea behind it is," Tom said , " that Irina wants some public input. She's been looking things over for the Invitational, and she's having doubts as to whether or not everything's been set up to their full _potential_ — especially when it comes to the final stage, which is always the center of attention of nearly everybody within a few thousand or million light-years. And it's not just _you_. She's basically invited all the mentors drafted for the Invitational."

Nita, Dairine, and Kit stared at him blankly in response.

Tom laughed. "No, really. It's nothing huge, she just wants you to look over and maybe set up a couple things. I think."

"Well, either way, for me it's a maybe. It depends on availability," Dairine said curtly.

Nita raised her eyebrows at her. _"'_ _Availability' . . ._ _"_

Dairine's death glare was rather on point.

"Quick question," Kit said, flapping a hand between Nita and Dairine in a fruitless attempt to redirect their attention. "Is it just mentors? Or will there be others? And how come you guys aren't on the list?"

Carl grinned. "Better make that a _few_ quick questions, Kit." He leaned back in the easy chair, crossing his arms. "For your first question, there'll be others for sure. She's not trying to put you mentors on the spot or anything, she just wants opinions. And as for why we're not on the list, we _are_. We're Seniors, after all: we're part of the group that set _up_ the whole thing. We're just choosing to sit back instead."

Tom nodded. "And one more thing: The Invitational isn't just for us Earthlings, you know. Plenty of other wizards from other planets have been following the Invitationals for a while, if not from a distance; so don't be surprised if you run into a couple aliens watching when the Invitational starts up. Or a couple hundred."

" _Hooo_ boy, don't let Carmela hear about _that_ ," Nita muttered, glancing over at Kit. . . . Who happened to be wearing an expression that implied being ready to risk life and limb to keep his sister from discovering _that_ particular fact.

Tom raised his eyebrows. "Actually, she's invited to the 'assessment' too," he said, and Kit's expression shifted to one of stark horror. "Irina included her in the name list, for whatever reason. You may want to keep an eye on her; Irina also invited quite a couple of our . . . otherworldly cousins."

"'Otherworldly cousins,'" Dairine repeated bleakly. _"Wow."_

Tom shrugged, his slight smile making it obvious he wasn't sorry. "Side effects of being a wizardly writer. And _speaking_ of writing, there's a deadline looming on the horizon . . . What time is it, do you know?"

Kit laughed. "You'd think _one_ of us would know, being wizards and all, but it's summer, so—probably maybe almost twelve?"

Tom nodded. "Thought so. I'm afraid we're going to have to leave your company. _Dai_ , and thanks for letting us stop by."

" _Dai_ . . ."

As Tom and Carl stood up to leave, Nita turned to Kit and muttered, rather loudly, "'Wizardly writer.' Is this what happens when you get to Senior level and practically drown yourself messing with language?"

Tom laughed and dismissed her question with a hand. "Trust me, it's merely an occupational hazard. You'll know one day, when you're old with back pains and taxes and all that fun stuff."

"Remind me to ask Bobo about an everlasting youth spell, then," Nita replied drily, with her trademark eyeroll. "By the way, back to the actual topic we were on, you can tell Irina I'm in."

"Me too," Kit added, and Nita punched him lightly on the shoulder by ways of expressing approval. "And Carmela. She wouldn't miss this for the world. _Well . . ._ "

"All right, we'll let Irina know. She'll message you the specifics. Have fun." Tom started out the door.

"And, please, for goodness' sake, _enjoy_ your summer. Don't overwork yourselves." Carl paused, very deliberately, and fixed the youngest sister of the Callahan family with a pointed look. " _Dairine._ You hear that? I'll say it again: _Don't overwork yourself."_

Dairine laughed darkly. "Never."

Carl gave her the two-finger _I'm watching you_ gesture, then headed down the sidewalk.

* * *

 _"'Wizardly writer.'"_

". . . You're never letting that one go, are you."

"You're the one who said it. I'm just here to prove you right."

* * *

"Huh. And here I was, thinking the Invitational was just spell-judging contests."

Nita's voice was slightly muffled by the pillow she'd wrapped herself around, trying to catch a last few blinks of sleep. She was, evidently, still too exhausted to change into real clothes. Kit, sitting next to her on the couch, poked her every few moments simply to annoy her, and every now and then her hand appeared to swat at him, if not without the usual energy.

Dairine, on the other hand, was already dressed and buried in Spot's display screen, after taking in enough coffee to make Nita wonder if Dairine had been sleeping at all. "Apparently not," she said, without even looking up from her reading.

"Irina knows what she's doing," Kit pointed out, poking Nita again. She glared at him over her pillow. "I mean, here's a ton of wizards getting together for the first time in eleven years. It'd be crazy to keep it boring and _just_ hold the competition." He paused, and Nita took the opportunity to jab him in the side. He didn't flinch.

"Wonder what she's got in mind," Dairine mused.

"Wizardly merch," Nita muttered with a grin. "Icebreaker games, with wizards. Oh good _Powers_ , can you imagine? A bunch of us sitting around playing Ships and Sailors."

Kit laughed. "Bingo, in the Speech. Can you imagine _that_?"

Nita made a face and whacked him with the pillow. "What I'm imagining is you taking that idea back _right now_. The last thing I need is Bobo overhearing that and magically informing Irina—"

 _"You've got mail,"_ Spot pinged, cutting Nita short.

"Oh boy," Dairine muttered under her breath.

Nita and Kit both raised eyebrows at her, which only prompted Dairine to roll her eyes in response before leaning forward to read Spot's screen better.

After a few moments, Dairine came up with a smirk. "Irina just sent out a message. We're meeting in exactly three hours, dark side of the Moon, et cetera et cetera."

And sure enough, Nita's manual notification light pinged to life at her side.

Nita groaned. She reached out to pinch it into nonexistence before she buried her face in the pillow. "Three _hours_ ? Why couldn't it have been three _days_ , so I can get in some _sleep_ at least . . ."

Kit laughed lightly and leaned back, lacing his fingers behind his head. "Wizard's holiday, Neets. At least this time, it'll be fun and not, well, the usual." Then he made a face. "Although, I'm not sure how getting Carmela involved would fit in with the idea of 'fun' . . ."

 _"Fun,"_ Nita muttered darkly, lifting her head and leaning her chin on top of her knees, her expression resigned. "It better be." She sighed and stood, throwing the pillow back onto the couch. "Well, I'll go get dressed, then." She glanced at Kit, stretching. "You," she said through a yawn, "should probably fetch 'Mela."

Kit groaned.

* * *

"I think," Dairine said, squinting in the dark, "I prefer the light side of the Moon."

Nita agreed silently, summoning her wizard-light. She blinked a few times as Dairine tapped another few characters onto their force-field through Spot, changing in the force-field's dim glow to a bright, pale blue light.

The coordinates Irina had given them landed the transit in the middle of a crater. Or maybe not; it was hard to tell. Either way, the greyness that surrounded the force-field was relatively flat, and went on for a long enough distance that the light revealed little more than moon dust and rocks.

"The dark side of the Moon, huh," Carmela mused, making a face as Kit brought his own wizard-light into existence, briefly blinding until he brought its brightness down to a fainter glow. "No kidding. Where's everyone else?"

"Um." Nita coughed, a gesture that also served as an attempt to clear the moondust settling on her face. "Might they be anywhere near the glow-in-the-dark parakeet?"

Dairine, Kit, and Carmela stared at her in a way that suggested _she'd_ turned into a parakeet. " _What_ glow-in-the—?" Kit started.

Then he looked. And stared.

" _Ohhh. That_ glow-in-the-dark parakeet."

"Ye _ah._ Tell me you see it now, Kit."

"Hard to miss."

Carmela sighed, dramatically. "Forgive us for _ever_ doubting you, Nita."

Nita smirked. "Apology accepted."

Kit nudged her, still staring at the bird. "Wait a sec. Is it . . . _staring_ at us?"

And indeed it was: perched on a moon rock, encased in its own glowing bubble of a force-field, eying the four humans that had appeared in a blast of misplaced air.

The parakeet tilted its head jerkily before taking to the air, a floating apparition drifting away.

Kit sighed. "It wants us to follow, I'm assuming?"

Dairine shrugged. "If it's Irina's, I wouldn't doubt it." And she started off towards the bird, a portion of the force-field expanding around her and breaking off from the spell that still encircled Nita and Kit.

Carmela threw a questioning look at Kit, and he rolled his eyes. "Yes, the shield's tailored to individuals. Yes, you can safely run ahead to see if Filif or Sker'ret are there without killing yourself."

She grinned and took off.

Nita glanced at Kit as they bounded after Dairine and Carmela. "What does Dair mean, ' _if_ it's Irina's'? Are there any other parakeets on the Moon that we should be aware of?"

"Who knows," Kit replied, grinning. _"Maybe—"_

"We," Nita said, neatly cutting through his sentence, "are _not_ going to joke around about the Planetary Wizard's pet, _especially_ not when she's on the same planet as us. Okay?"

"Well technically it's a satellite, Neets, I thought _you_ were the one who was nitpicky about this kind of stuff—"

Nita punched him in the shoulder, although without much force. "Move it, the runt's gonna outfly us." And then she grinned. "Not to mention, _Carmela . . ._ "

Kit sighed, for the second time that hour. "What am I now, my sister's keeper?"

 _Only when she's around aliens,_ Nita replied, and put on a burst of speed. _Come on,_ El Nino _!_

* * *

The glow-in-the-dark parakeet did turn out to be Irina's, but it wasn't the only thing that lit up the dark side of the Moon.

A huge force-field created a glaringly brilliant spot on the gray dimness, a dome of light set upon a sphere of darkness. Beneath it, shapes massed together: a crowd of wizards, humans and not so, all tinged a pale blue. They watched as Dairine and Carmela entered the bubble, their force-field going conjoint with the giant one.

Nita and Kit, however, took their time in approaching, using the spare moments in an attempt to identify the others of the gathering.

 _You know,_ Bobo said grumpily, somewhere in the back of Nita's mind, _I could just run a simple species-identification scan on the lot of them and save you the trouble._

 _Naaaah,_ Nita replied silently, trying to squint out the brightness. _That takes away all the fun._ "Kit?" she asked, aloud. "What're you seeing?"

 _Uh, humans?_

 _Noooooo._

 _Wait. Neets, I think one of them's_ glowing _._

 _Huh?_

 _There's really, really bright spot. Towards the center, on the left. The one that's burning away my retinas?_

Nita blinked, both in bemusement and in a hopeless attempt to rid her vision of the huge neon-yellow spots drifting through, an annoying side effect of staring too long. _I know the one you're talking about. What about it?_

 _I think it's got_ tentacles _,_ Kit replied, his thought-voice full of envious awe. _Whatever 'it' is. I bet you anything it's bioluminescing—_

Nita squinted again, glad she'd tailored the force-field spell to hover over the Moon's surface so she wouldn't have to worry about stubbing her toe or tripping over in low gravity. _I can't tell, it's too_ bright—

They were now close enough to see individuals, and through the light of the giant force-field, Nita made out the motion of a wave.

"Is that Irina?" Kit asked, skirting around a particularly large lump of moon rock.

Nita kicked off towards her right to avoid ramming into the same stone, their force-field stretching briefly. "You tell me, I've got all these gold dots floating around my eyesight."

As they walk-hopped closer, Irina Mladen turned away from whoever she'd been busy with and waved at Nita and Kit again, smiling, her parakeet returned to one shoulder and a wide-awake baby slung over the other.

Kit bent down and added some more characters in their force-field spell, allowing it to go conjoint with the giant bubble that encased the Planetary Wizard of Earth and the rest of the mass of wizards.

" _Dai stiho_ , cousins! I appreciate your coming, Nita, Kit," Irina said, somehow managing to give them another smile through the tiredness written all over her face. "And your respective sisters. Things have been rather chaotic around Earth, what with the recent series of storm interventions and all; but the Invitational must go on . . ."

"We're glad to be of service, Planetary," Nita said, rather charmed at the fact that Irina remembered their names. _Or mentally_ _looked them up in the manual two seconds ago. But that doesn't matter—_

Next to her, Kit straightened up from eying the Speech characters that spilled over the Moon's surface, briefly rubbing his eyes. "Is there anything specific you'd like us to do?" he asked, straight to the point and sincere. "We're all ears. That is, if Dairine and Carmela would join us . . ."

Nita frowned slightly and glanced over behind Irina, trying to distinguish the aforementioned two from the crowd. "Uhh—"

Irina cut her off with a wave. "It's quite all right," she said, her eyes amused, throwing a glance over her shoulder. "I invited one of the mobiles from the species Dairine helped create during her Ordeal, and I believe they're doing some catching up. And perhaps introductions."

Nita laughed, rather breathily. "Well, if they aren't giving you any trouble . . ."

"No, no, they're perfectly fine," Irina said, smiling. "Really. Now, as for instructions, you'll hear about them soon enough." She glanced at the crowd again, tilting her head slightly. " _Actually_ , I do think we're about ready to start, so . . ." She hefted the baby sling, shifting it higher on her shoulder and causing the parakeet to flap from her shoulder to her head. " _Dai_ until then, cousins."

 _"Dai,"_ Nita and Kit replied, watching as the Planetary Wizard for Earth drifted away.

"There's more people here than I thought," Nita said, squinting. "It feels pretty weird, having a crowd on the _Moon_ . . ."

"Agreed," Kit replied. "And with Carmela here— Never mind, I'm getting images."

Nita raised her eyebrows, still attempting to scan the mass of people (and, every now and then, aliens) for a familiar face or figure. It was a hard thing to do under the light of the force-field, when everyone was oddly lit and lent a blue glow. "What sort of images?"

"One word," Kit said gravely. _"Chocolate."_

Nita snorted. "Not with Irina around, I think," she replied, and stopped quite still, her eyes slightly wide. "And _speaking_ of Irina . . . Take a look over to the right."

"What? . . . _Oh._ "

For Irina Mladen, Planetary Wizard of Earth, was in the last stages of hauling herself onto a sizeable moon rock.

Nita and Kit weren't the only ones who had noticed it; wizards around them were quieting, watching the Planetary carefully pull herself upright on a boulder. However, as soon as she stood, silence began to slip over the crowd.

Irina waited, her gaze flicking over the crowd as it settled, as the silence became total and absolute. Expectant.

" _Dai stiho_ , cousins! Fellow wizards and mentors, honored guests and colleagues, thank you for your appearance today and all your kind support." The cheeriness in Irina's voice made Nita blink. _I didn't think she would pull the "enthusiastic announcer" thing on us . . ._

 _She's Irina Mladen,_ Kit replied. _She can pull whatever things she wants to . . ._

"Today we are trying something that, in all its thousands of years of existence, has never before been done for the Invitational. I like to describe it as a poll, of sorts: I, and the rest of the Invitational Committee, have decided that we would like to hear back from those of you who have either expressed interest in this year's Invitational or are participating in it." There was a brief pause as Irina waited for the excited murmuring to rise and die down.

"If you would all please locate the beginning of your manifestation of the wizardly database-knowledge—for most of us here, that would be our manuals—you will find a description of your roles here today. Following that will be a map of locations, coordinates that point to where the Committee and I have set up a designated safe-to-transit zone, as well as this specific location, which we will use as a central point. Either I or another member of the Committee will remain here for the entire duration of this event, so please do not hesitate to ask us for any assistance you may require. However, I will add that details regarding the actual competition aspect of the Invitational will not be relinquished or released. This event will deal solely with other, non-competitive portions of the Invitational."

Nita raised her eyebrows and nudged Kit. _Who knows, there might be wizardly merch after all . . ._

"Paths have already been set to connect all the locations specified on the maps, and the Committee and I ask that you please stay on them to prevent any—unfavorable situations."

Kit laughed silently. _Bet you anything that was directed at 'Mela._

"And, one last word before you begin," Irina said, smiling. "Please enjoy yourselves, meet a few new colleagues, and keep in mind that this is completely optional. We simply ask for your participation as a means of making the Invitational the best it could possibly be, and nothing more. In no way are we requiring your feedback or advice." And here Irina paused, and used a highly specific and sincere expression in the Speech: _"Whatever you give, we will accept; and whatever you will not give, we will not take. We thank you for whatever you may offer, however little or however more."_

With that, Irina gave a small bow and stepped down from her pedestal. Applause from Earthly wizards erupted from the crowd, and Irina bowed again, smiling. " _Dai_ , cousins and colleagues!"

"Let's go find 'Mela," Nita suggested as the crowd began to disperse, starting down the glowing paths that had flickered to life once Irina finished her speech. "And Dairine. Before they blow something up, or buy an entire alien government with chocolate, or worse."

Kit groaned, but he didn't disagree. "Right. Seriously, we should get paid for this—"

"Paid for _what_ , dear brother?"

Kit groaned again. _See what I have to deal with?_

Nita covered her eyes. _Right now all I'm seeing is_ too much light _!_

Which was all too true: Carmela, as usual, had found an alien to hook onto and befriend (at least, Nita preferred to think of it as befriending). And this time she'd really outdone herself: an octopus-like creature, practically bursting with blue bioluminescence, all writhing tentacles and two eyes perched towards the very top of its bulging head. _. . . Which looks like it might topple off anytime,_ Nita thought to herself, hazarding a peek behind her fingers and trying to adjust to the blinding glow of its bioluminescence combined with the light of its personalized bubble of what Nita assumed was something like water.

 _"Dai stiho,"_ the octopus-creature said, sounding hesitant, and Nita watched in faint amazement as it flapped the end of a tentacle at her and Kit. With even more amazement, she realized that the bioluminescence dancing over its skin wasn't just random lines of light: it was in patterns that flowed through the graceful arcs and slopes of the Speech.

 _Mamvish is gonna_ flip _,_ Nita thought.

 _Huh?_

 _Never mind._ " _Dai_ , cousin," Nita said, waving a little. _"Dai,"_ Kit agreed. "I'm Kit, and this is Nita."

The creature bobbed a little in its bubble, recognizing their greeting. "They call me—" And then Nita and Kit stared as the glowing Speech characters melted away into new patterns, flashing in turn in a way that seemed to carry great significance.

Carmela grinned at Nita and Kit's expressions.

 _Oh, yeah. Mamvish is so going to flip._

 _Out of_ what _, exactly?_ Kit replied, bemused.

 _Jealousy. Next thing we_ _know, she's going to try to use her glowy-patterns to write out her name, too . . ._

"—but we can call him Hiraehd for short," Carmela was saying. "He's a Bologluous, from a planet in our galaxy somewhere. Am I right?" And she reached right into Hiraehd's water-bubble and patted the creature on the head, producing bubbling noises like purring underwater.

 _Hiraehd?_ Nita thought through her horror. Something caught in the back of her mind. _Hiraehd_ . . . _That sounds an awful lot like "hieraaith."_

 _"Longing" . . ._

She coughed. "Uh, 'Mela—"

"Yeah yeah, I know, I probably shouldn't do that a lot, wouldn't want Hiraehd to bring home any unexpected visitors from Earth!" Carmela said, grinning at Kit's obvious discomfort. "Ooh, and also, this is Tei-randesar'keraskett. She's a Na-riet, runs worldgating stuff on one of the smaller worldgating facilities in galaxy NGC 6240."

"The outer edge, of course," Tei-randesar'keraskett said, mildly. "It's rather despairing a place when one gets closer to the center . . ."

After seeing flashy Hiraehd, Tei-randesar'keraskett was a bit duller by comparison: an odd, short cross between a mountain goat with the nimble daintiness and delicacy of a doe. That is, if mountain goats were dark ash-gray and had a single thin, curved horn jutting out from the center of their foreheads that burned a smoldering silver.

" _Dai stiho_ , cousins," she said in that mild voice, nodding at Nita and Kit. "Do call me Tei." After a pause, she added, "Your friend here is rather mystical."

Carmela grinned.

 _"_ _Mystical,"_ Kit thought drily. _I wouldn't put it that way . . ._

Nonetheless, both Nita and Kit gave her a _Dai_ in return and their names, to which Tei developed a thoughtful look and said, "The two of you returned the Light to the Sky, didn't you?"

"Uhh," Nita said, the same time Kit said, "I think so, yeah."

Tei's eyes seemed to stare at something invisible to the rest of them and she zoned out.

 _How,_ Kit thought to Nita, _did 'Mela become friendly with_ her _?!_

Nita rubbed her face: it was beyond time to get started, and here they were socializing. _Although I guess that's part of this whole thing . . ._ "Where's Dairine?"

Carmela shrugged. "Last I saw she was having a heart-to-heart reunion with one of her, whatchamacallit, mobiles."

"'Heart-to-heart,'" a voice behind her said drily. "Right. Says the one dragging around a— Oh, never mind. Guys, this is Rego." Dairine grinned. "He's here to get a firsthand look at something the mobiles have only seen on the archival info. Rego, say hi."

 _"Dai stiho,"_ he said, his wide eyes mostly on the Bologluous and the Na-riet.

 _"Dai,"_ they replied.

"Hey, _wait_ a second," Carmela said, rather suddenly, a wicked grin spreading over her face. "Is that who I think it is?"

Dairine rolled her eyes. Nita and Kit both groaned.

 _Why did we bring her along, again?_ Kit asked, watching with exasperated annoyance as his sister flounced up to two very familiar human wizards, one slightly taller and wearing much more black than the other.

 _Darryl I don't mind,_ Nita said, sighing inwardly. _But with Ronan_ and _Carmela on the same moon . . ._

 _Hold up, Neets, I don't think they're alone—_

 _Whaaat?_

 _See—there's two other people with them, I think . . ._

Darryl McAllister chose that moment to appear beside them. "Hey! I didn't know you guys were mentoring too."

Nita sighed. "Darryl, you have _got_ to stop that, it's not even scary anymore—first three times, maybe. Ten times later, no."

"For once Nita's right. And _watch_ where you're going, for the One's sake, you almost crushed Rego—"

Kit snickered. "Occupational hazard, Darryl, am I right?"

Darryl grinned. "Hazard? More like entertainment. Or hobby. _Dai_ , cousins!" he added, waving enthusiastically at Hiraehd, Tei, and Rego before turning back to Nita and Kit. "And seriously, you guys didn't tell me you were mentoring!"

"What, do we have to ring you up every time something slightly exciting happens in our lives?" Nita said, laughing. "Well, we're all here now." Then she eyed Carmela, still chatting up with Ronan. ". . . Or, almost." And then she glanced at Hiraehd and Tei, wondering whatever they thought of all this. _And,_ she realized, rather guiltily, _if it feels like we're completely ignoring them . . ._

 _I wouldn't worry,_ Kit said silently. _If they're here, they're here to watch and take stuff in. That's basically what they're doing right now, so . . ._

"That reminds me," Kit said to Darryl. "Anyone else we know with you?"

"No one you guys know, actually," Darryl replied, grinning. "But yeah, they're other _wizards_. Actually, one of them just passed Ordeal, someone I met on a smaller intervention maybe a week or two ago. And one of them's Ronan's friend from that green place over yonder."

Nita and Kit snickered. "' _That green place over yonder_ ,'" Nita repeated. "How are you still _alive_?"

In answer, Darryl produced another version of himself a foot away, wearing identical grins and causing Dairine to make another face as she nudged Rego closer to herself.

Nita laughed. "Okay, I rest my case."

"Are you people talking about me behind my back again?" Ronan Nolan asked as he approached, surprisingly unaccompanied by Carmela. "Janey _mack_ , you two really love to bring a party, don't you? _Dai stiho_ , cousins, the name's Ronan," he said, nodding at Hiraehd, Tei, and Rego.

 _"Dai . . ."_ Then, to everyone's surprise, Hiraehd said, "You're the one who Took In the Sea, aren't you?"

Ronan looked stunned for a moment before saying, "Um, yes, that would be me."

Tei nodded sagely, her eyes still somewhere distant. "And you bore the Power of Light, and Their Spear. You were quite known on my planet, actually, especially after your Power brought the Hesper to light . . ."

Ronan wore an expression that suggested he wasn't sure if being popular on another planet was a good or bad thing, but was pleased nonetheless.

Carmela chose that precise moment to arrive. "On Tei's planet," she added, "'light' is basically synonymous with 'life.' Just a FYI."

"And what," Kit said, slightly annoyed, "have _you_ been up to?"

Carmela grinned, nudging Ronan. "You should probably make some introductions, Mr. Took-In-the-Sea-and-Bore-the-Power-of-Light." And then she turned to the others, her grin turning wicked. "I've been chatting with Ronan's _buddy—_ "

Ronan sighed, rolling his eyes. "Will you shut it? Zara is _not_ my buddy, she is another wizard who literally took the Oath two days ago and has barely begun her Ordeal. I am kindly doing my Advisory a favor by showing her some more of the Art." He paused and leveled Carmela with a _don't try anything funny around me_ look. "And if you people are the reason she decides being a wizard isn't so great after all, I'll take _you_ into the sea." He turned and gestured to someone Nita couldn't see. "Zara, these are my irritating friends from the red-blue-and-white place down yonder. And some from farther than that. Come say _dai_."

Zara obliged. _"Dai stiho."_

 _"Dai . . ."_

Zara was almost Ronan's exact opposite: shorter, with long, braided pale hair and eyes, her clothes suggesting she'd been at some sort of sports meet before she'd transited here.

 _She doesn't look much older than Dairine did when she went on Ordeal . . ._

"Welcome to the Art of Wizardry, cousin," Hiraehd said, rather abrupt in the silence that had fallen as they'd all given Zara a once-over. She grinned shyly in response.

"Hey, you guys are forgetting _my_ friend," Darryl complained. And he disappeared, only to reappear with a boy, tallish and dark-skinned, dressed in what looked like it could have been a dull sand-colored robe tied at waist level. However, his most striking feature was the swirling patterns of what appeared to be tattoos that curled over his skin like ink on a canvas of skin.

 _Where,_ Kit thought, _the heck does Darryl go when we're not watching?! I thought I'd looked over everything in his precis . . ._

Nita blinked. _Must have been a recent thing, then._ And then she remembered Carmela, and wondered how this new factor would affect her in particular.

Kit groaned, silently.

" _Dai stiho_ , cousins," Darryl's friend said, his Speech tinged with an odd melodic lilt. "I'm Noryc." He grinned, slightly. "Darryl mentioned this would be an interesting form of cultural exchange, and I see he's correct."

 _"Dai stiho . . ."_ And as introductions went around, Nita realized , with something of a shock, _Good Powers, we're going around with this enormous crowd,_ _how're we going to get_ anything _done—_

 _Don't worry, Neets,_ Kit replied, amused. _Remember what Irina said?_

 _Right, but still . . ._ And then she sighed, trying to remember that this wasn't a normal intervention, was for fun and networking. _I hope._

 _We'll be fine._

"So, uhh . . ." Nita reached into the air and withdrew her manual, a little self-consciously. "Where should we go to first, cousins?"

There was a silence in which the many wizards present looked into their respective manuals, disturbed only by Carmela asking Tei what kinds of things her gating facility offered and Tei's mild-voiced answers, and when Darryl accidentally hit something on his WizPod that accessed read-aloud close captioning.

Most of the designated "sites" were set aside for special educational features unique to Earth's Moon, as well as a few areas marked _Restricted access, Committee only_ and _Earth cultural display site._ However, one particular area that stood out to Nita, and the description marked next to it made her smirk. _Kit,_ _do you_ see _all those places they're saving for vendors from the Crossings?_

 _Trust me,_ Kit replied drily, _I see them. And I'm determined to make sure 'Mela doesn't get within a hundred feet . . ._

"Perhaps one of the Earth cultural display sites?" Hiraehd suggested, the same moment Zara said tentatively, "A cultural display site?"

Nita didn't think it was anatomically possible for Hiraehd to smile, but the Bologluous's eyes crinkled in a way that very strongly suggested a grin.

"All right then," Dairine said, closing Spot's lid. "Does anyone else want to go to a different place? . . . No?" She glanced around, as if taking in the sight of the group again. "Okay, let's go, then. _That_ way, Rego."

As they started down the path, with Nita and Kit somehow at the head, an awkward silence fell over the group. The stillness was interrupted only by Tei's mild questions directed towards Ronan, asking him if it really was true that the Power of Light had inhabited his soul.

 _Okay, this is getting really awkward,_ Nita thought, glancing at Kit.

 _Yeah, I know what you mean . . ._

Kit turned around, walking backwards, and coughed. "Uh, it might be a good idea to, you know, find someone you don't know talk with them. If you guys are okay with that?"

Nita watched in amusement as Hiraehd immediately bobbed closer to Zara, causing her to blink a few times. Noryc drifted closer towards Ronan, who had already decided to strike up conversation with Tei, acknowledging them with tip of his head.

"Well that was easy," Dairine muttered, glancing down at Rego. "You know, you should probably chat with a few of them, too . . ."

Rego made a concerned noise. "What about you, Dairine?"

"I'll be right up here, don't worry about me. Go on," she said, nudging Rego towards the others.

Nita cocked an eye at her. "You know, runt, you should probably go talk with them too."

Dairine shook her head. "I'll be fine."

. . . _Roshaun?_ Kit asked silently.

Nita sighed. _Probably._

Dairine gave Nita a look. "Seriously. I'll be okay, go ahe—"

And then the ground shuddered.

* * *

The first thought that flew through Nita's head was, _Wait. There aren't supposed to be earthquakes on the_ Moon _._

The second was, _Please don't let it be That One, it's_ summer _!_

It wasn't so much of a quake as a tremor, but it sent Nita stumbling. She felt herself crash into someone, felt another jolt toss her aside. Blue-white light flooded her vision. She lost track of what her body was trying to do in its wild attempts to regain balance.

Darkness fell over her sight. The surface of the Moon vanished beneath a shadow of something vast and cold, cast from high above. And yet, somehow, she could still see its horizon, lined by something gray and faint and cloudy rising over it, gathering, surrounding a single point of brightness that sparked with white—

Nita shut her eyes.

And then, as abruptly as it began, the shuddering stilled and the shadow fled.

Nita felt herself slam into something that was warm, dense, and surprisingly furry. Her legs fell out from under her, and she sank to the ground, suddenly exhausted.

"Are you all right, Nita?"

She blinked reluctantly. Concerned faces surrounded her, and then a hand appeared to haul her up. Nita shook her head, closing her eyes.

"Can you tell us what happened?"

She rubbed her eyes blearily and held up a hand, trembling a little. She couldn't speak, not yet.

 _Neets?_ Kit asked silently.

 _You didn't feel it?_

 _Feel what? You just suddenly started— I don't even know what you were doing, but you were falling all over the place, and— Nita, it was scary. Will you be okay?_

 _I think so. I think . . . I think it was a vision. Only this time, it was 4-D instead of three . . ._ And she pushed away from Kit's mind-voice. _Bobo?_

 _Everything was recorded and saved,_ the peridexis replied.

 _Thanks._ _Run a symbolism/archetype check for me, just in case_ _?_

 _Running._

Nita opened her eyes, slowly.

"We need to find Irina," she said, taking a breath. "I— I saw something, and I don't like it."

It was then she noticed that Noryc was holding something out to her: something that sat cupped in his hand, glowing faintly with the fire of the Speech.

Nita raised her eyebrows.

"On my _astahfrith_ planet," he said, carefully choosing his words, "we give this to our oraculars after they see something . . . damaging. It's a healing spell, only specialized and contained physically."

"Oh." Nita released a breath. "Thank you." She stretched out a hand to accept it.

It was a bead of water, or something like water, with a single long character in the Speech curled inside of it. As she watched, it sank through her palm and vanished with a flash of light.

The vision-quake had knocked something askew inside of Nita: that she knew. It was why she'd been so disoriented and stunned upon pulling out of it. But with the flash of light from the healing spell, that off-kilter something straightened itself and clicked into place once again. Nita smiled slightly, closed her eyes briefly before opening them again.

 _You'll be okay?_ Kit asked quietly.

 _Okay as I'll ever be . . ._

Zara was watching, wide-eyed. "Do you feel better?" she asked anxiously. Nita offered a grin and shakily pushed herself to her feet. "I've been better, but this'll do for now." She offered Noryc a quick nod. "Thanks, Noryc."

Tei's usually-distant gaze met Nita's in an unnervingly direct way. "Actually," Tei said, deadpan, "It was Noryc who constructed and powered the spell, but Hiraehd who supplied the materials. Recognition ought to be equally distributed."

Nita blinked a little at that. "Uh, right. Make that 'thanks, Noryc _and_ Hiraehd.'"

Hiraehd flashed a string of characters at her: _You're entirely welcome._

"This is fascinating and all," Carmela said abruptly, gesturing around her, "but we need to go find Irina, right? We should hustle up and get on the road." She paused, then pointed at Nita. "And _you_ , Juanita Louise Callahan" —Nita dignified herself with a death glare at Carmela— "are going to spill the beans as we walk. Let's go, people! I mean, uh— Oh, forget it, let's just go."

"'Spill the beans'?" Rego asked curiously.

Dairine grinned. "It's an expression. Idiom. Means 'tell us all about it.'"

Carmela gave Nita a _well, get on with it_ look. Nita rolled her eyes. "Let me analyze the thing first, okay? Then I'll spill as many beans about it as you'd like."

As they started back towards the Irina and the central point, Nita glanced at Tei, slightly befuddled.

 _Any clue why she was so insistent on the "recognition ought to be equally distributed" thing?_

She felt Kit's amusement. _What, can't take being called out by a unicorn?_

 _Kit!_

 _I'm just kidding, please don't tell her I said that. I think it has to do with the way their psychology's set up. I guess Na-riet really value recognition where it's due. It's the way their government is set up too, I think._

 _Huh,_ Nita thought, watching as Tei went back to asking mild-mannered questions from whoever happened to be closest to her: right then, it was Darryl. _We could learn a thing or two from them._

Something pulled at the back of her mind, and Nita obliged. _Bobo?_

 _The symbolism/archetype analysis_ _is finished._

 _Okay. What do we have?_

 _Already transferred to your manual. It'll be highlighted._

Nita pulled out her manual and flipped to the page, reading as she walked, which was largely possible thanks to a peripheral vision trained by years of walking-and-reading. Scanning the page, she frowned slightly; there were a lot of things listed beneath _darkness_ and _dust covering_ , more than she liked.

 _I don't think it's a symbolic vision, though,_ Bobo said. _It's a premonition: Warning, this might happen._

 _I'm with you on that,_ Nita replied, shutting her manual and slipping it into her otherspace pocket. _But there are_ _some things in there that I think_ are _right._

 _Such as_ _?_

 _The "bright point" was the kernel. Something—or someOne—is going after the kernel. More likely someOne, which was also the shadow . . ._

 _Maybe._

"All right, 'Mela," Nita said. "D'you still want a summary, or— Oh. Hi, Irina."

The Planetary Wizard of Earth smiled, a little wearily. "I heard you had a vision?"

* * *

By the time Nita was done explaining, she felt as though she understood why Peach had been so cranky all the time.

For one, there were the interruptions, mainly from Carmela and Ronan.

For two, there were the questions that made Nita wonder if they'd ever taken a look in the "Predictions and Prophecies" section in the manual, or Knowledge, or whatever they had. ("But you're not _sure_? How are you _not sure_?")

And for three, the troubled look Irina had developed towards the end of her explanation was enough to make Nita even more worried than before.

"The Moon's kernel has never been lost," the Planetary said, frowning. "I've always kept a watch over it. But its protection spells aren't suited to fend off an attack, if the shadow in your vision was indeed the Lone One . . ." She heaved a sigh and shifted the baby sling, the baby inside soundly asleep despite everything. "I'm going to check on it. All of you had best come with me in case something happens."

"Are we doing a transit?" Darryl asked, a bit too eagerly.

Irina raised her eyebrows. "Yes."

"Noryc and I will take the energy price, then," he said. "Is that all right, Planetary?"

Irina smiled slightly. "Do as you see fit."

* * *

The kernel was, apparently, stored on the bright side of the Moon.

Once the dust settled after their transit, Nita made sure to look toward the horizon, toward home, toward the blue gem that hovered in the darkness. As always, it gave her energy and purpose, and she smiled; because, in the end, this was what being a wizard came down to.

"The kernel has a camouflage spell over it," Irina said apologetically. "It will take some time to find it, and add the shields I want to add . . ."

"Don't worry," Carmela said, pointing towards the sky. "We'll just do some sightseeing."

"Is that your home planet?" Hiraehd asked, bobbing upwards in an attempt for a better view.

Nita grinned and Kit said, "Yeah, and it's the best one there is."

Tei flicked an ear, watching the blue and green with them. "I wouldn't be so sure about that, Kit . . ."

Nita, Dairine, and Carmela laughed.

"My planet looks somewhat like that," Noryc said thoughtfully. "Less green, perhaps, and more yellow, but the seas are the same color."

"Mine is clear," Rego announced. "Sort of. Layers. It's kind of hard to describe . . ."

Hiraehd bubbled delightedly. "Mine is entirely blue. All ocean."

"We mostly have summit-snow and snow-melt," Tei said pleasantly, "but these oceans are quite a sight. My world is a steep one of mountains and not much more . . ."

They watched in silence as clouds swirled over the Earth, as billions of people lived their lives, seen and yet not.

"What are your people like?" Dairine asked, suddenly. "Generally, I mean, as a species. Noryc, you go first. What's an _astahfrith_ world like?"

Noryc sighed, a sound almost inaudible and somehow nostalgic. "Actually, Darryl happened not to mention that my planet is actually one of a newer universe, one where the word 'magic' is usually synonymous with the term 'science.'" He paused. "Perhaps that is the heart of my species's existence: we see the Art as the only way to live, and morals govern everything. And our planet name means something like _truth_ in the Speech."

There was a silence as his words sunk in.

 _A world where "magic" means "science,"_ Nita thought in wonder. _Now that's something I could get behind._

 _I guess that's the true meaning of_ astahfrith _, isn't it?_ Kit replied.

 _Maybe. Stop listening to my thoughts._

 _Hard not to; you're loud._

"What about you, Hiraehd?" Zara asked eagerly. "What's your world like?"

Hiraehd considered, bobbing serenely in his bubble. "Dark, I suppose, for your people. But only towards the heart. Closer to the surface, there's plenty of light and life. Most forms of it haven't reached the point where they have an understanding of the One and can use wizardry. I'm a Senior, but even I spend most of my time convincing the tides to go the right way or the _bahai're_ to migrate." He produced a few bubbles of amusement. "It's primitive, I suppose, but it's a world, even if we don't call it by name."

"Dairine created mine," Rego said, rather proudly. Dairine rolled her eyes, embarrassed, but she was smiling. "She helped create my species, too. We call our planet the Motherboard. I think . . . I think we're run by information, and storing it and keeping it. It's not quite like most worlds."

"What about you, Tei?" Carmela asked, turning towards the Na-riet.

Tei considered, tilting her head so that the Earthshine glinted off her horn. "My planet's name means _high above the existence of one_. We rely on the ideals of unity: equality, respect, and so on. . . . I believe that is why the hyperstrings are so responsive there—we believe in being one with the Universes and everything in it. Even if not all of us happen to be wizards."

"And what about your world?" Hiraehd asked, gesturing to Earth. "What do you think of it?"

"It's the best one there is," Carmela answered immediately.

"I'm with Carmela," Zara said, grinning.

"It's home," Darryl said, giving it a fond glance that made Nita smile. "Home sweet home, even if it sucks sometimes . . ."

Ronan smirked. "Filled to the brim with eedjits and the sort. But there's nowhere else like it."

"No kidding," Dairine said, crossing her arms. "Been halfway across the known Universe, and I still come here to this little lump of rock at the end of the day."

Nita laughed. "We can be a really divided species most of the time, but . . . you know, there's hope. There's always hope."

Kit nodded. "They've said everything there is to say."

Silence drifted over them, pleasant and familiar and amiable.

Irina appeared next to Nita, smiling faintly. "The shields are set. Thank you all; this may be the most precious commentary I'll receive all day."

Nita wondered if she was referring to her vision regarding the kernel or their discussion of homeworlds, and then decided Irina meant both.

"And you, Planetary?" Noryc asked, his eyes still fixed on the Earth. "What is your opinion on your world and its people?"

Irina smiled, turned to the light of her planet. "Difficult to manage at times," she said thoughtfully, ". . . but it truly has its moments."

And they sat there in the bask of Earthshine, watching a world rise.


End file.
